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Vote Katie Morag!

Batemanbroadcasting has another serving for you from the national debate this time with FOUR voices – starting with the editor of the only national newspaper title so far to back a Yes, Richard Walker, of the Sunday Herald. He gives us his views of the media coverage and the issues faced by journalists and says another paper may declare for Yes.

Stephen Noon is chief strategist for Yes and is therefore the architect of the campaign. He puts his faith in the graded canvass system measuring opinion from one to 10 rather than in the traditional opinion polls. I brought him together with writer Alan Bissett who’s a kind of one-man creative industry at the moment. If his level of activity is this high before the vote, he’ll turn into a global corporation after a Yes. He has a great story about an encounter on the Glasgow train…

Then there’s one of my favourite people, the scriptwriter Sergio Casci,

currently lead writer on the Katie Morag series authored by Mairi Hedderwick and a favourite read in our house. Mairi’s a Yes so I ask Sergio if Katie Morag is moving in the same direction….Sergio’s enthusiasm is boundless (he’s half Glasgow, half Italian) and he is convinced we’re headed for independence and No voters will have to face themselves afterwards if we fail.

It’s lively and enlightening and there’s no Jenny Marra. (Although if she’d like to talk to us, she can. You’d still listen, wouldn’t you?)

Our Twitter thingy is @bateman_podcast. And there will be an iTunes whatsit as soon as we straighten out WordPress…

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22 thoughts on “Vote Katie Morag!”

Great podcast Derek, thoroughly enjoyed it. Great points raised all round and I note that Alan Bissett is going to be paying Stranraer a visit soon, so I’ll be making a point of toddling along to that.

“Yes people – as he calls them – are trained to orchestrate friendly chats aimed at nudging their mates a few points up a 10-point scale of commitment, with 10 being the mark of a true believer: “Somebody who is three becomes five, becomes seven, becomes 10.”

These conversations happen at work, in the pub, around the kitchen table, anywhere friends meet. They may appear accidental to the targets, but they are not.
There are also pop-up Yes Cafés. “It’s like the old church coffee morning. At each table there is a Yes person.” The agnostics can ask questions, but the Yes people are trained to listen before they answer. “We start by saying, ‘What’s important to you?’ ” says Mr Noon. “There is no hard sell. It’s conversion through conversation.”

Now I know where I’ve heard all this before. I was a teenage evangelist, after being converted (briefly) to a particularly strident form of Christianity. The techniques we used were much the same as those described by the Yes Scotland strategist. The scale of commitment, the purposeful chats, the methods of persuasion have all been nicked from the Church. They’re doing evangelism, aren’t they? Mr Noon responds with a smile and a laugh that sounds nervous.”

It’s all quite sinister. Reminds me of scientology, with Salmond being the equivalent of L Ron Hubbard and Stephen Noon being the senior auditor.

Kind of explains the complete inability of yes voters to realise they are being sold a pup so that the leadership can grab power for themselves.

Basically the grass roots campaign for Yes is going to win this referendum. Not Alex Salmond or the SNP. Ordinary People want change and want democracy in their own country and they are working their socks off to achieve it.

Where is the No campaign? A complete shambles with no coherent policies and no coordination between the disparate groups and certainly no grassroots campaign to speak off.

At times I have doubted if we could do it with all the MSM and the TV against us. I thought it would take a miracle to overturn these advantages.

I have no doubts now – we are going to win back democracy for our country. The tide has turned and lies and misrepresentations of the No campaign are collapsing every day.

As for sinister and who is being sold a pup. Lessee, what’s the latest scandal to tear through Westminster politics. A protected ring of paedophiles is it? Or is it Westminster rushing through a bill to continue monitoring the general public by covert agency means? Oh wait, perhaps its Dave seeking to push through an anti strike law.

You have missed the point. What I’m getting at is the pretty weak attempt at slandering the entire Houses of Parliament because of some unfounded accusations. If the entire house is being accused then surely all snp mp’s, which would include salmond, are guilty in macarts book as well.

In the bill walker situation, I understand that sturgeon was told that there were concerns about walkers wife beating before he became an snp MSP and nothing was done. Slight difference methinks.

As for more moral bankruptcy, what’s your view on Joan mcalpine using public money to pay off her lovers wife?

sorry to burst your balloon Jings but what is being described in this article is in fact Sales 101. Any good salesman knows that he has two ears and one mouth and should use them in that ratio.
A line pitch is called a ‘Dell Trotter’ sell: look ere dahlin, a bargain at twice the price!
Politicians tend to line pitch: They rarely show any interest in what the voters need or want, they are primarily interested in telling you why you ought to want what they are pitching at you. Whether or not it is relevant to you, or of any use: Today I am offering this pig in a poke. Pigs don’t come any cheaper and pokes don’t come any better, get them while they’re hot!

FYI It is known as the 7points of selling
1: Approach. The hellos and howdedoos to establish a rapport with your potential customer.
2: Qualification: You endevour to ascertain what it is that you can supply that your prospective customer (PC) wants/needs.
3: Agreement of need: Once you understand what your PC is looking for you ask: Do I understand correctly this is what you are looking for? No, repeat stage 2 until you do. Yes, go to stage 4 but never before the answer is yes.
4:Fill the need. Present what you have that your PC has agreed they are looking for.
5:Sell the company: Establish your trustworthiness as a reputable supplier of what you have agreed you can supply.
6: Close: conclude the deal, sign the order/contract.
7:Cement the close: Confirm the deal and the parameters for delivery. Your potential customer is now your customer.
8: Visit the Kirk and thank god for making you such a brilliant salesman/woman *delete as appropriate.

Thoroughly enjoyed this broadcast. It was just what I needed after reading Iain MacWhirter’s opinion piece in today’s Herald, saying that the opinion polls suggest that NO campaign will win. I now have renewed hope.

I’d happily listen to Jenny Marra being interviewed by you, Derek, because she would be asked the questions which the BBC/MSM will never ask her, e.g. what is her attitude to social democracy, does the Labour party have any socialist policies, and perhaps some searching questions about some of the real facts in the independence referendum. There is no chance whatsoever of any “Scottish” Labour party politician, or anyone from BT/No Thank/Naw being interviewed by you. They would claim that you are a “biased” interviewer, without any sense of irony about pro-indy politicians or supporters being interviewed by BBC/MSM.

I’d love to hear the response if you invited her though – I guess there would be a delay until the London minders made a decision though, as an MSP wouldn’t have that level of free choice.

This week’s broadcast was particularly good, from Lord of the Rings (Alan Bissett) to Katie Morag (Sergio Casci) and plenty of inspiring and informative chat in between, BUT having listened to all your broadcasts I want to share my one disappointment. Where are the women’s voices? AyeTalks has some outstanding women speakers and I imagine you could find really interesting women to interview on future shows.

Listening to the interview with the editor of the Sunday Herald, I was interested in two points in particular.
The first was where he said that the online ‘bloggers’ were reacting to stories already in the MSM. it’s worth knowing that one of the reasons Newsnet Scotland started was because they found the stories were distorted, one-sided, partial information or not being reported. They do investigate the background and contact the people involved in the stories.
The second was disquieting when i thought about it. The editor said he spoke to the staff before decking to go public about supporting Independence. Some were against but more were for. No problem with that.
But if the stories chosen and printed depends on the stance of the staff it calls into question all stories, all other issues they cover.
So the editor can of course, clearly put the stance of a paper in the editorials but the articles should generally cover the whole story.
When a vast array of papers carry the same stories and with the same slant on Independence because that is the way the staff see it, it would suggest they do the same with say the the Israel/Palestine conflict, or the Ukraine conflict.
We know that the stories about Independence are skewed and sometimes just not true. Why should we believe any issue is being covered comprehensively and without partisan attitudes among all the staff?